Question about earlier introduction of the StG-44

[Skot the Sanguine]

Yes, Jhessail is right, the Germans were known for their counter-attacks.  For almost every Allied advance the Germans would often counter-attack on a company, battalion, regiment or at most division level to blunt the offensive or often take back what was gained.  My grandfather experienced this many times, mostly while an Anzio.  A classic example is what happened to Darby's Rangers at in the region of Cisterna during the initial Allied advance at Anzio in January.

 

[Ule]

yea true but what i ment was, that as a whole the german forces werent blitzing across the countryside like in 39-41, where an assult rifle would allow for quicker manovering and overwhelming of defensive positions. and if the whole army isnt doing so you cant relay on certian equipment to win the war if only say 100 men have one, in one sector. or such like.

obvisiously in your immediate area youll be counter attacking, assualting and fighting tooth and nail to defend your position depending on your own and your plattoon/company etc needs.

and anyway the squads being built around the mg, negates any bonuses (cept street cqb fighting) given by an assualt rifle, where you can use the mgs rof and firepower to a much greater extent, and use your rifle for accurate long/mid distance shots.

abit of topic here, but does anyone the ammount of gw41-43s that were issued? as they seem to be a weapon people know about you rarely see or hear of them (im abit of a german nerd, im just about to get into ww2 airsoft, but even i rarely see them anywhere)

Not to sound arrogant

dont worry about that were in the sages guild, our arrogance and singlemindedness is one of our balwarks against the unwashed masses.....

 

[Skot the Sanguine]

All valid points Ule but one thing to consider is that regardless of the strategic situation, the tactical importance is what is most relevant.  An effective assault weapon has the same tactical impact on the war regardless of whether its use is in a offensive or defensive strategic situation.  I agree regarding it being superior in urban combat, but by in large if the Wehrmacht was engaged it an urban battle it was failing its main purpose of executing a mobile cauldron battle war (Stalingrad is a great example of this sort of failure, eschewing the ability to bypass the city and surround it in favor of fighting it out street by street).

As for the semi-automatic rifles, I don't have the numbers but I know the Gewehr 43 was more common than the Gewehr 41 (which had a tendency to jam in harsher conditions and was muzzle heavy).  Probably by mid 1944 especially they were seen in greater numbers but still nowhere near the levels of the Kar 98k.  My guess is they were mostly seen employed by more elite units like the SS Panzergrenadiers.  I do remember seeing a German sniper training video where, interestingly, the snipers were using scoped Gewehr 43's.